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Sharpening the Pitchfork

“Last February, an heir to the Johnson & Johnson fortune wrote on the Huffington Post, ‘For the mega-rich, recession brings with it the ability to live well at a lower cost and with less of a hassle.’

In Decemeber, Arianna Huffington’s daughter Christina came out at New York’s International Debutante Ball.* The organizer’s justification for the $14000 a table event: ‘Watches cost more.'”

Watches.

Cost.

More.

Buh?!

Ok, not to get all class war and shit, but. a FUCKING COMING OUT PARTY IN 2009 DURING A FUCKING RECESSION?! You know what? Fuck it — Sarah, via email (h/t), is absolutely fucking correct:

[T]hat’s exactly when we need to get all class war. Right now, when even my Republican parents are pissed about bailouts and CEO pay.

I mean, an asymmetrical class war has already been going on for too fucking long (Tax cuts! Welfare reform! Deregulation!), only with hostilities coming from the top down–and they’ve been kicking our fucking asses. With all that wealth still concentrated at the VERY top, it’s about goddamn time the little people finally started fighting back. Because it really, really says something that some people (even nominal progressives ) still have the fucking stones to throw $14,000/plate debutante balls during the worst economic crisis since the Great fucking Depression.

That’s it — I’m fucking done taking hunks of cake without question and pretending to like the taste. Time to import a non-violent modern variation of the French Revolution to North America post-fucking-haste.

*[insert tart observation about how not paying your writers really helps with the bottom line — and the coming out party expenses.]

9 thoughts on “Sharpening the Pitchfork”

The obscene display of wealth has been the cause of quite a bit of resentment in the global south. Meanwhile in North America, most were tranquilized by having enough credit to consume all the “cheaply priced” gadgets, needless extras and distractions that gave them the illusion that we were benefiting from “wealth creation”.

I hope such arrogant displays of conspicuous wealth stirs people into action. Canadians haven’t been hit as hard yet. Still, we have a different psyche than the US where it’s A-OK to flaunt your good fortune when the economy is relatively stable. For the most part, average Canadians have no idea that the prosperity of the last decade was going mostly to the hands of a few. When I heard what the CEOs of Canadian banks make as salary, I was astounded. I don’t think we even index tax rates for salaries over a $1 million annually.

Not sure how it could be possible that most Canadians didn’t know that wealth was increasingly concentrated at the hands of a few. Statistics Canada and most TV, papers and radios have been stating that point for several years now.

But I agree that being able to afford gadgets, cell phones and air-conditioned cars mostly on credit is a distraction for most. As long as we can get our toys we’re happy.

Naah Matt you’re behind the times: my last-but-one watch cost £30 and the one I’ve just bought cost four hundred grand. Early noughties inflation, I tells ya. It’s OK though because Mummy and Daddy bought me a South Pacific island instead – it was cheaper than the watch, see.